My ube coconut rolls are a dream: fluffy, ooey gooey, not-too-sweet, and made with real ube. The ube dough is enriched with butter and swirls of ube jam, brown sugar, and coconut, then topped with a delicious, silky brown sugar cream cheese frosting and toasted coconut.
Want to learn more about ube? Read my ultimate guide to ube!
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❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The rolls are so pillowy and light! The dough is enriched with butter and eggs to yield flavorful, fluffy buns. And before baking, a brown sugar cream mixture is poured on top. This makes them even more tender with a sticky, rich, gooey sauce on the bottom!
- The rolls are not too sweet. Coming from a not-too-sweet household, I made sure to make these ube rolls very palatable. The cream cheese frosting is on the tarter side, but you can always add more brown sugar if preferred.
Interested in a matcha version? Try my brown sugar matcha boba buns!
Ingredients
To make ube brioche coconut rolls, you’ll need the following ingredients:
For the ube brioche dough:
- Ube extract gives the dough its purple yam flavor and purple color!
- Adding cornstarch with the all-purpose flour will help yield soft, cakier rolls!
- The active dry yeast will be mixed with sugar and warm whole milk before incorporating it into the recipe. If using instant dry yeast, you can skip the dissolving step and add it straight into your dry ingredients.
- Eggs and unsalted butter will enrich the brioche, making it very tender and flavorful.
For the filling:
- For the ube roll filling, you’ll mix together brown sugar (light or dark), ube extract, and ube jam.
- You’ll top the filling with a hefty amount of shredded unsweetened coconut! You can also use coconut flakes.
For the heavy cream mixture:
- Right before baking, you’ll pour a mixture of coconut milk, heavy cream, and brown sugar (light or dark) on top of the rolls. This will make them richer in flavor and add a sticky syrup that will coat the bottom of the pan.
For the topping:
- This is a basic cream cheese frosting comprising of full-fat cream cheese, brown sugar, and vanilla. A bit of coconut milk is added for some flavor.
- After frosting the rolls, I top them with shredded unsweetened coconut, which was lightly toasted in my oven!
For the full list of ingredients and measurements, see the recipe card below.
💡 Baking Tip
- Weigh your ingredients! One of my favorite kitchen tools is a kitchen scale because it’s more accurate than measuring by volume. If you use cups, spoon the flour in gently, then level it with a knife or spatula.
How to Make Fluffy Ube Coconut Rolls
Step 1: In a bowl, whisk together warmed milk, yeast, sugar, and ube extract. Let sit for 5-10 minutes, or until mixture is foamy.
Step 2: In a stand mixer fitted with hook attachment, mix flour, cornstarch, salt, yeast mixture, and eggs on medium speed until dough forms. Add a tablespoon of softened butter every 30 seconds, then mix for about 8 minutes, or until dough passes the windowpane test: take a small piece of dough and gently stretch it. If it is kneaded enough, it should be translucent and you can see light passing through.
Step 3: Lightly cover dough and let rise in warm place until doubled in size, about 1.5-2 hours (or overnight in the fridge!). Mix all of the ube filling ingredients in a bowl until combined.
Step 4: Roll dough out into a 18″x12″ rectangle. Evenly spread filling, top with shredded coconut, and cut out twelve 1.5-inch strips. Gently roll into coils, placing each one into a 9″x13″ baking pan.
Step 5: Lightly cover and let rise in warm place until doubled in size, about 1-1.5 hours. Stir together ingredients for the heavy cream mixture, then pour over rolls. Bake at 350°F/177°C for 25-35 minutes, or until rolls no longer doughy in the middle. During the last few minutes of baking, make the frosting.
Step 6: Spread brown sugar cream cheese frosting all over warm ube rolls. Top with toasted shredded coconut. Serve and enjoy them warm!
For full instructions, see the recipe card below.
🌀 More Roll Recipes
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Thank you so much! -Bianca ❤️
📖 Recipe & Video
Ube Coconut Rolls
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Equipment
- small bowl for heavy cream mixture
- 2 medium bowl for yeast mixture and filling
- large bowl for proofing dough
- Stand mixer hook attachment for dough, paddle attachment for filling and frosting
- plastic wrap or kitchen towel
- 9"x13" baking pan see notes
Ingredients
Ube Brioche:
- 1 cup (244 g) whole milk warmed
- ⅓ cup (66.67 g) granulated sugar
- 2 ¼ teaspoons (7 g) active dry yeast
- 2 teaspoons (10 g) ube extract
- 2 (100 g) eggs room temperature
- 4 ¼ cups (531.25 g) all-purpose flour
- 4 tablespoons (32 g) cornstarch
- 1 ¼ teaspoons (7.5 g) fine sea salt or table salt
- ½ cup (113.5 g) unsalted butter softened
Filling:
- ½ cup (118.29 g) ube halaya can use store-bought ube jam!
- ⅓ cup (73.33 g) brown sugar packed; light or dark
- 1 teaspoon (5 g) ube extract
- ½ cup (46.5 g) unsweetened shredded coconut or coconut flakes
Heavy Cream Mixture:
- ⅛ cup (28.25 g) full-fat coconut milk
- ⅛ cup (29.75 g) heavy cream
- ½ tablespoon (6 g) brown sugar packed; light or dark
Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 8 ounces (226.8 g) cream cheese softened
- ⅓ cup (73.33 g) brown sugar adjust to taste
- 2 tablespoons (30 g) full-fat coconut milk can sub in coconut cream
- 1 teaspoon (4 g) vanilla paste or extract
Topping:
- ½ cup (46.5 g) unsweetened shredded coconut or coconut flakes; toasted in oven or a pan
Instructions
For the enriched dough:
- In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 cup (244 g) whole milk (warmed), ⅓ cup (66.67 g) granulated sugar, 2 ¼ teaspoons (7 g) active dry yeast, and 2 teaspoons (10 g) ube extract. Let sit for 5-10 minutes, or until yeast is activated and mixture is frothy.
- In a stand mixer fitted with hook attachment, add 2 (100 g) eggs, 4 ¼ cups (531.25 g) all-purpose flour, 4 tablespoons (32 g) cornstarch, 1 ¼ teaspoons (7.5 g) fine sea salt, and yeast mixture. Mix on medium low speed until dough forms.
- While mixing on medium low speed, add ½ cup (113.5 g) unsalted butter a tablespoon at a time, every 30 seconds. Continue mixing for 8-10 minutes, or until dough passes the windowpane test.To do the windowpane test, take a small piece of dough and gently stretch it. If it is kneaded enough, it should be translucent enough to see light passing through.
- Transfer dough to a large bowl, lightly cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in warm place until doubled in size, about 1.5-2 hours (or overnight in the fridge!).
For assembly:
- In a medium bowl, mix together ½ cup (118.29 g) ube halaya, ⅓ cup (73.33 g) brown sugar, and 1 teaspoon (5 g) ube extract until combined.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough into a 18"x-12" rectangle. Evenly spread ube filling. Top with ½ cup (46.5 g) unsweetened shredded coconut, then cut twelve 1 ½-inch strips.
- Gently roll each strip into a tight roll, placing each one in a 9"x13" baking pan. Lightly cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1-1.5 hours. In the last 5-10 minutes, preheat oven to 350°F/177°C.
Bake ube coconut rolls:
- In a small bowl, mix ⅛ cup (29.75 g) heavy cream, ⅛ cup (28.25 g) full-fat coconut milk, and ½ tablespoon (6 g) brown sugar until combined. Pour all over the rolls.
- Bake for 25-35 minutes, or until rolls are no longer doughy in the middle. In the last few minutes of baking, make the frosting: in your stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, mix softened 8 ounces (226.8 g) cream cheese, ⅓ cup (73.33 g) brown sugar (adjust to taste), 2 tablespoons (30 g) full-fat coconut milk, and 1 teaspoon (4 g) vanilla until fully combined.
- Let rolls cool for about 5 minutes. Spread on cream cheese frosting and top with toasted ½ cup (46.5 g) unsweetened shredded coconut. Enjoy!
Notes
- For this recipe, I cut 12 equal pieces and arranged them 3×4 in a 9 inch by 13 inch pan. I’ve also used the same recipe to cut 9 equal pieces and arranged them 3×3 in a 9-inch square pan!
- Weigh your ingredients! One of my favorite kitchen tools is a kitchen scale because it’s more accurate than measuring by volume. If you use cups, spoon the flour in gently, then level it with a knife or spatula.
- Refrigeration instructions: Store cooled ube coconut buns in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave.
- Freezing instructions: Store cooled ube coconut buns (with or without frosting) in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat in the microwave.
